Bear-ing Witness

A giant, stuffed panda peers out over Nimitz Highway.

By Victoria Wiseman

Published: 2011.06.20 08:00 AM

Photo: David Croxford

A giant, stuffed panda peers out over Nimitz Highway, standing sentry for the collected miscellany of Island Demo’s outdoor refuse lot. Workers at the transfer station—where licensed construction companies can dump demolition debris—pluck interesting items from the rubble and display them for the amusement of passers-by.

These days, the jewel of the lot is a 57-foot teakwood boat, rescued after it sunk in the Ala Wai Canal. “It was a nightmare trying to get it out of there,” says Island Demo owner John Leary, requiring a custom-built trailer, a police escort and a person to sit on the bow to lift the traffic lights with a stick while the boat passed underneath.

Are these treasures for sale? “Most of the stuff, I’d just give it away,” Leary says. Except the boat, which he’s dubbed the Sea Rider. “I’d sell it for $20,000.”